Background:Rev. Tenku Ruff is a Soto Zen Buddhist priest, certified in both Japan and the West. Tenku trained in Zen monasteries in Japan and North America, she was ordained by Tessai Yamamoto Roshi, in Morioka, Japan, and she received dharma transmission in the same lineage.

Tenku holds a Master of Divinity degree from Maitripa College, a Tibetan Buddhist graduate school in Portland, Oregon. She is also a board certified chaplain (BCC) with the Association of Professional Chaplains and has worked as a hospice chaplain and a palliative care chaplain. Oncology, end-of-life care, and grief support are her primary areas of focus as a professional chaplain.

Tenku is the president of the Soto Zen Buddhist Association. She is a member of the Buddhist Council of New York, the American Zen Teachers Association, the Association of Soto Zen Buddhists, the Association of Professional Chaplains, and she served as chairperson of the 2017 Generation X Dharma Teachers steering committee. Tenku has academic training and a strong interest in ethics. She is also very interested in interfaith and inter-Buddhist dialogue, and in ways people can support each other and grow through challenges in life. Her interest in ethics led Tenku to the Right Use of Power training. She particularly hopes to bring this training to clergy and religious organizations, and to women in leadership roles.